Gould has an essay in "Mismeasure of Man" arguing that Darwin himself was
relatively un-racist, for his times. Though of course "Darwin" does not
always equal "Darwinism"

>===== Original Message From John W Burgeson <burgytwo@juno.com> =====
>I received the following comment (not on this list) from a fellow ASAer
>whom I respect but do not always agree with. He was commenting on the
>DISCOVERY article about the PBS broadcast.
>
>"Darwinism was historically a product of racism. That has been
>documented in many ways. We may whitewash it, but it is a fact. To put it
>another way, "social Darwinism" preceded Darwinism. Wealthy Europeans
>wanted to have a good excuse why they should not be compassionate--
>letting the weak die off is good for the race. This view persisted quite
>overtly until after WWII."
>
>I'm looking for a reasonable published refutation of this statement.
>
>Burgy